The 10 Best Golf Courses in Dublin

Dublin has long held the reputation of being one of the world's most vibrant and exciting cities, the mere mention of it generally being enough to raise a smile. 

There are all manner of ways to lose yourself in Ireland's capital, but while talk of the Emerald Isle's best courses tends to take you further north, Dublin also boasts more than 30 golf courses to enjoy in all shapes and sizes.

The very best, as is the case across Ireland's 400 or so courses, tend to lean towards the links variety. Dublin has plenty of exceptional parkland tracks as well, however, and we're confident in saying that every entry on this list will credible make a trip to Ireland’s capital all the more memorable.

Naturally, however, it's only right any list of Dublin's best golf courses the very best course in the city (and, by overwhelming consensus, one of the absolute best tracks in the British Isles).

The Best Golf Courses in Dublin

Portmarnock

Location: Burrow, Portmarnock, Co. Dublin

Green fees: From €405

In the coming years we will likely see The Open spread its wings to hosting its Championship outside the United Kingdom for the first time, with Portmarnock a new favourite to stage the game's oldest Major. 

Play this County Dublin jewel and you'll quickly realise why this is the case, and why it unsurprisingly tops our list. Indeed, it Portmarnock has the qualities to stand above it will generally rank above many previous Open courses already, and that's before the millions that an Open would bring in. Put simply, Portmarnock is one of the greatest links courses on the planet, more than living up to its unofficial title as the 'Irish Muirfield'. 

When the likes of Paul McGinley is discussing golf in his homeland he will comment that this might be the best. His fellow Dubliner Padraig Harrington, who like McGinley featured in the Walker Cup here, is as big a fan.

"It was one of the first 'name' courses I visited, and I fell in love. Over the years, I’ve come to learn that what sets Portmarnock apart is that it’s uniquely fair. It is flatter than most other links courses, and the lack of massive dunes and blind shots means there is no trickery; it’s all out there in front of you," he told the Golfers' Journal. 

"Account for the conditions and hit the shot. The layout makes it almost perfectly balanced; during my many rounds there, I’ve found that it is challenging for every level of golfer, but ultimately it lends itself to being a tournament venue."

There's no guarantee that playing an Open course will tick every visitor's box, play Portmarnock and it would almost be impossible to come away as anything other than thrilled you've made the effort.

If the R&A weren't keen then they would quickly shut down any talk of their biggest event being linked with a new course on the rota, instead there is a lot of talk of feasibility studies and logistics into how it can happen.

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The Island Golf Club

Location: Burrow, Portmarnock, Co. Dublin

Par: 72

Green fees: From €325

There are a few reasons that we don't hear nearly enough about The Island, the main one being that the club could only be located by boat up until 1973. All of this has since changed, and The Island is quickly emerging as a rival to Portmarnock in terms of the sheer splendour it provides. I've often slipped The Island in to several course conversations to try and pick up some credibility for not just running through the same old incredible courses.

Sat on the next piece of headland north of Portmarnock and routinely a feature at the very top end of any GB&I ranking, the Island probably remains the least celebrated and talked about courses in any conversation, despite having The Amateur in recent years. Having played here 15 years ago I made a point of asking the pro in the shop why nobody talks about it more. He replied that's the way they liked it. If you ever get the chance to visit here, it's incredible.

'Most unexpected experience?' - The Island. 'Where should I go that others don't? - The Island. And so on. The front nine was always talked about as the weaker of the two halves and used to begin with eight par 4s, now Mackenzie & Ebert have been in and mixed up the routing and added two new holes.

Then you have the exceptional back nine to savour and a run of holes that are as different as they are brilliant. 

The Island starts with a banger of a par 4, maintains a steady brilliance and then somehow moves up several levels. You're generally waiting for things to tail off at some point but it never does. Absolutely world class.

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Jameson Golf Links

Location: Burrow, Portmarnock, Co. Dublin

Par: 72

Green fees: From €325

Completing Portmarnock's trio of top-class links is Jameson, which formerly operated under the confusing title of Portmarnock Hotel & Golf Links. Thankfully they've rebranded away from that mouthful of a name, meanwhile implementing plenty of on-course improvements to bring it up to par with its immediate neighbours. 

Members of the most famous whiskey family in Ireland are buried in the cemetery to the right of the opening hole, while the revamped back nine makes far better use of of the prime links land and its mighty dunes. More is also made of the coastal views and the sights and sounds and the final 10 holes offer an altogether different test to what's gone before.

The meat of the back nine – two par 5s and a par 4 which was a three-shotter – is bookended by two great short holes and then there's a fun have-a-go par 4 at the 17th before having to play the last properly with two well-struck shots. 

Then, if you're lucky enough, the hotel beckons just a few paces away.

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The Royal Dublin Golf Club

Location: North Bull Island Nature Reserve, Dublin

Par: 72

Green fees: From €270

That play-off putt by Seve to win the Irish Open, followed by the boxing routine celebration? That was at Royal Dublin. If you have this course booked into an Ireland trip then be sure to make time for a tour of the clubhouse before or after your round – I'm struggling to think of anywhere that celebrates its past as well as here and, in particular, its association and love for Christy O'Connor.

For many 'Himself' is almost a mythical figure in the game, here the club really brings his heroics to life.

Out on the course it's as flat as a pancake and hole after hole of honest links golf. By the nature of an out-and-back links it's almost hard to pick out which hole was which. That's not necessarily a bad thing, either—in fact quite the opposite with most Irish links courses famed for their incredibly dramatic, towering dunes.

The club has undertaken a bunker programme that has lit up the course and provided the right angles and challenges – the good news is that there are a lot less of them too.

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Corballis Links

Location: Corballis, Donabate, Co. Dublin

Par: 66

Green fees: From €30

At number five we've gone with something a bit different but almost next door to The Island. Here you could enjoy a brilliant stretch of links golf along the coast, play 18 holes, have a sandwich and treat yourself to something from the pro shop and have change from £50. 

For context, to play all the courses we've mentioned so far, the rack rate price would be something like €1300 —already a chunk of change before you throw in accommodation, flights and food/drink. A round at Corballis Links will set you back around €30.

This is a municipal course where you won't get pyramids of balls on the range or goodie bags but you will get firm links turf and golf by the seaside. Bernhard Langer, when playing in Irish Opens in the area, would spend the early part of the week working on his chipping and putting here. 

American designer Ron Kirby made some course improvements in 2007, and word is quickly spreading about Corballis's status as one of the best value rounds in Ireland—if not the entire British Isles. Given what you're paying, many would happily walk off after playing holes 3-7. 

Don't be fooled by the scorecard, it might measure 5,000 yards but there will be more than enough for you to make a mess of in the interim. An outstanding add-on to the Championship offerings in the near vicinity.

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Luttrellstown Castle Resort

Location: Castleknock, Co. Dublin

Par: 72

Green fees: From €70

Undoubtedly one of the most visually striking places to play golf anywhere in Ireland, Luttrellstown Castle resort is characterised primarily by the exquisite 15th century castle (that, incidentally, is available for public hire) that forms the epicentre of its grounds. The adjoining golf course, however, is also one of the prettiest and most varied in the area, giving the impression of an escape truly fit for a would-be noble.

Impressively long at just over 7,300 yards from start to finish, the Donald Steel and Tom MacKenzie layout is something of greatest hits reel from across Irish golf, with pristine mature parkland fairways opening up to links-style bunkering, slopes, gorse and a bevy of tranquil (yet menacing) water hazards.

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Dun Laoghaire

Location: Enniskerry, Co. Dublin

Par: 66

Green fees: From €95

While Dun Laoghaire has existed in some form or another since the 1910s, the Kingstown club that exists now was only really completed in the late 2000s, following a move to the Ballyman Glen site it now occupies. 

Now almost two decades on from the historic move, Dun Laoghaire now stands firmly as one of the most interesting and celebrated courses in the Dublin vicinity, having been awarded the honour of hosting the Curtis Cup in 2016. Famed for its winding fairways and unique layout, which consists of three nine-hole tracks that can be played in varying orders to form one of three courses, Dun Laoghaire is fairly open for a parkland track but no less challenging for it, with plenty of water about to keep you honest.

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Castle Golf Club

Location: Corballis, Donabate, Co. Dublin

Par: 72

Green fees: From €75

One of the most conveniently located courses on this list, Castle Golf Club occupies the site of the former Rathfarnham Castle just a 20-minute drive from Dublin's city centre, and is one of the few courses in Ireland to be able to boast having been designed by legendary architect Harry Colt (of Royal Portrush and St. George's Hill fame). Colt's design still exists to some extent almost 90 years on, however extensive modernisation of the course was carried out in the early noughties to make it a more demanding test for the modern golfer.

The experience at Castle is one of few frills, with plenty of classic parkland golf on offer defined by tight, tree-lined fairways and plenty of bunkering along the way. It's not a course you can overwhelm with the long stick, rather it rewards smart shot making and, famously, leaves three devilishly long closing holes as a reward for a taxing day of carefully winding your way through the greenery.

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Grange

Location: Corballis, Donabate, Co. Dublin

Par: 66

Green fees: On request

Long celebrated among Dublin's very best parkland courses, Grange has more than a century of history lying amongst its thickets of greenery. Opened in 1909, the course Dubliners and visitors play today was devised by legendary Scottish architect James Braid in the late '20s, with long par 4s and a famously  testing opening pair of par 3s the order of its day as it winds its way through the thick forest of the Dublin Mountain foothills. 

Uniquely, Grange also has 24 holes on-site, with the 'outer' six incorporated from time to time to form what's called the Sheahan Course.

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Hermitage

Location: Lucan, Co. Dublin

Par: 72

Green fees: From €80

While it's not necessarily the most prestigious golf course in Dublin, Hermitage might be the most illustrious club to join. Thankfully, those among Dublin's upper crust who do invest in a membership are rewarded with a pristinely manicured parkland track that sits among the best kept in Ireland. 

Hermitage isn't a particularly long track, but more than two decades spent overhauling both the green and bunker systems across the course mean it's by far one of the most luxurious to play. The parkland layout devised back in 1915 by local architect James McKenna remains a true and firm test, with plenty of natural hazards placed to punish overly complacent play. 

Sadly visitors can only play it between Monday and Thursday, but don't let that put you off booking a mid-week round.

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